Corset.



R. J. WRIGHT & H. S. BRIDGMAN. CORSET.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.21. 1914.

Patented Nov. 13, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1 W I TNESSE S:

JQMM wwvm Maw- R. J. WRIGHT& H. S. 'BRIDGMAN.-

CORSET.

APPLICATION FILED MAR ZII 1914.

1,246,370. Patented Nov. 13-, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES: INVENTORS. /gW Bo d Jfi/rz'gkZ (m flay 6f 5 A TTOR NE Y.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROYAL J. WEIGHT AND HARRY S. BRIDGMAN, OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS. I

.consn'r.

Application filed March 21, 1914. Serial No. 826,234.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ROYAL J. WRIGHT and HARRY S. BRIDGMAN, citizens of the United States of America, residing at Springfield, in the county of Hampden and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in (orsets, of which the following is a specifica- 'tion.

This invention relates to improvements in corsets. The object of the invention is to prevent the stiffening material, usually termed stays, and composed'of various materials as, steel, ratan, whalebone, vulcanized rubber and so forth, used therein from working loose and theirends projecting beyondthe outer surface of the body portion of the garment.

The usual and common practice at the present time for retaining the stays in place is to simply stitch, or otherwise secure a strip of cloth or other material directly over the stay forming a pocket in which the same is located. This practice is objectionable in that it does not prevent the stay from working loose and finally wearing an opening through the body portion of the garment. It has also been the practice to fold the covering strip over the ends of the stays before stitching the same to the garment. This method does not entirely prevent the stay from finally working loose. The old method, therefore, left the stay free to move up or down and finally to push or wear an opening through the garment. Our improvement, therefore, is to entirely overcome this objection, and relates to securing the stiffening material to the body proper by means or devices other than stitching.

The improvement, in general, consists in permanently securing the stiffening material directly to the body of the garment without the employment of stitches, and thus prevent any relative movement between the stiffening material and the body portion.

In addition a reinforcing strip of sulficient width is to be employed and placed in a horizontal position to cover the ends of the stays and so arranged that this strip is plainly visible'from the outside. This reinforcing strip may cover any or all of the stays of stiffening material.

It is preferably so located as to extend over and around the lower ends of the fastening or border stays to which the clasps are attached.

In the drawingsi Figure l is a front'elevational viewvshowing, 'in dotted lines, theinclosed stays, and, in full lines, two of the narrow stays eX- posed.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented N 13 1917, i

I Fig. 2 is a View showing the manner of attaching'the stays to a strip of cloth or other suitable material.

Fig. 3 is an end" elevation of a portion of the fabriccornposing the corset and showing the stays secured in place.

Fig. 4 illustrates the horizontally arranged strips of cloth forjreinforcing the closing edges of the garment, extending over the lower ends of the stays and visible 7 from the outside of the garment.

, Fig. 5-is a transverse sectional view on the line 55 of Fig. 4, and

Fig. 6 illustrates the broad idea of'the in vention showing the stay of stiffening material permanently and directly, secured to the body portion of the garment,

Fig. 7 is a transverse sectional view on the line 77 of F igQ l.

-Referring to the drawings in detail, 1

designates the cloth composing the body portion of the garment. 2 are narrow strips of the stiffening material, Qisa stiffening strip of wider width, while 2 in Fig. 6,

shows the stiffening material secured directly to the body portion of the garment. One manner of securing the stay is to place a strip of cloth or paper 3 between the stays and the cloth 1, next place thestay 2 or? thereon, then place a strip of cloth-or paper 4 over the stays, and, lastly, over the strip 4 is placed'the strip 5. The whole is then stitched together and to the garment, as indicated at 6 see Fig. 2. The stays, may if desired, be first covered with paper or other suitable material, which, in turn, is

covered with glue or other adhesive material to cause'the stays to permanently adhere to the body-portion ofthe garment or to the strips 3 which may be of paper or cloth. It will be seen that, when the strips 3, 4, and 5 are stitched to the cloth 1, the stays, by reason of their permanent adherence' 'to the strip 3, are prevented from slipping out of place or working loose shouldthe me tallic capped ends thereof wear an opening through the cloth of the garment.

Referring now to the modification shown in Figs. 4 and 5, 1 designates the cloth composing the main or body portion of the gar ment as before; 7 the stays of stiffening material located near the'closing' edges of'the garment and to which the hooks and eyes or fastening devices 8 are secured, while the numeral 2 designates the stays shown in Figs. 1 and 2. 9 designates a supplemental fastening device located below the devices 8. It'frequently occurs that the supplemental fastening device 9 is left unfastened i causing the ends 7 and 7 "of the stiifening material to wear an opening in the cloth 1. In order to prevent this wear, the horizontally arranged reinforcing strips 10 are placed over thelower ends 7" and 7 and securely stitched or otherwise secured to the body portion 1 of the garment, as indicated at 11 and '12. By reason of these reinforcing pieces 10 of cloth or other suitable material being located and arranged over the .ends 7 and 7 of the stiffening stays shown at 7 andQ, they are prevented from wearing an openingthrough the cloth 1 of the arment should thesupplemental fastening de- -v ice9 be left disconnected. The reinforcing strips 10, itvwill be observed, are located upon and'plainly visible from the outside of the body portion of the garment. It is to be understood that the reinforcing strip 10 may, if desired, extend as far as the first section of the corset in order to cover the stiffening stays 7 and 2. Fig. 7, which is a sectional view on the line 'Z-TofFig. a, clearly shows the edge 7 in serted between the folds of the reinforcing strip 10. This strip is for the purpose of preventing the ends of the marginal stay 7 and the other stays 2 from wearing a hole through the covering of the corset garment. Referring now to the construction shown in Fig. 6, 2 designates a stay of the stifiening material which is covered with some suitable material, as cloth or paper 2 which, in turn, is covered with a suitable adhesive material that will cause the stay 2 to permanently adhere to the cloth 1 of the garment. This figure shows, in brief, the general idea of applicants improvement insecuring thestays of stiffening material to the garment, which is to cover the stay with some suitable materiahapply an adhesive thereto in order to cause the stay to become permanently adherent to the garment, then -pla'ce over the stay and its covering a a strip of covering material. If found desirable the intermediate strips of cloth or paper 3 and 4: maybe used althoughit is not necessary.

It is of course clearly within the province 9 e 1 nt nti n t at We do .1 in Pra e,

tend to limit ourselves in re'gard't'o the number of strips of cloth or paper that are to be used in the pockets in which the stays are located.

It is also clearly within the province of our invention not to limit ourselves to the use ofa'n'y patrieular kinds of material as we may, of .course, use other materials than cloth or paper as specified, as for example, leather. I The adhesive material used, may if desired,be also changed, as rubber cement may be used in place of glue.

It is also understood that the substitution of other well known means for permanently securing the parts together, other than stitching, may be employed if found desirable in the manufacture of the garment.

It is also, clearly within the range of equivalents in our invention, that the stays of bone, wire, steel, or other material, may, if desired be coveredwith celluloid or any other suitable material or compound.

iVhatwe claim is: p

1. A corset construction, comprising, a body portion, stiffening material permanently secured to the marginal edges of the body portion and terminating intermediate of the length of the body portion, and a laterally extending reinforcing strip carried over the lower ends ofsaid material and around the marginal edgesof the body portion. I

2. An improvement in corsetshaving the usual body portion of fabric, stays for stiffening the same, means for. securing the'stays to the body portion to prevent relative movement therebetween comprising a strip having adhesive material between the stays and the body portion,two strips, or layers of cloth over the stays, said strips-being stitched to the body portion to form a pocket for the stays, whereby the stays are made permanently adherent to the bony portion, and a reinforcing strip secured to the outer surface of the garment and extending in a horizontal direction across the lower ends of the stays to prevent the same from Working through. the body portion of the garment, said reinforcing strip being stitched to the body portion of the garment.

ROYAL J. WRIGHT.

ARR RI GMA Witnesses:

HARRY OW N, H. E. HARIW L- rename, e" 

